Arrangement
by Crystal Dawn
Summary: When Filia's head priest calls her back to the temple for a new assignment, it turns out to be a lot more permanent than anyone bargained for. As she heads to a new temple and a new life, it's up to Xellos to figure things out!
1. Chapter 1: Something Old

**Disclaimer:** Ever have random guys hit on you over the net? Well, I do. Usually, I just convince them I'm a lesbian. And they go away. That being said, I don't own any of these marvelous characters. Some Japanese underworld figure who secretly controls us all probably does. I sure hope he doesn't sue me.

Arrangement

Chapter One: Something old...

by Crystal Dawn Phoenix

It was midday in the small desert town's only tavern. Under normal circumstances, there would be few customers, or interesting goings on. On this particular day, however, something out of the ordinary was catching the eyes of passers by as well as the frequent customers of the tavern. Unlike other days, today there were strangers in town. That by itself wasn't enough to draw this sort of attention, though. What was attracting the attention of the bewildered onlookers was the ruckus the newcomers were causing from their table at the tavern. Dishes clattered to the floor, chairs were upset, and several muffled protests were heard throughout the establishment as the visitors ate. It was quite a spectacle.

There were six of them altogether. The red-haired girl in the black cape seemed the most vicious. Among her companions were a tall man with long blonde hair, who she seemed to delight in fighting over the food with. Joining them in the scuffle was another girl, only a little smaller than the first, with black hair and large blue eyes. The three of them were the source of all the commotion, gaining stares from the other patrons of the tavern and not bothering to acknowledge them.

"This is so undignified," a woman with long blonde hair remarked. She was sitting at a small table beside the ruckus, sipping at a small cup of tea. Beside her sat a man with glinting metallic hair and rocks in his skin. He snorted and brought a cup of coffee up to his mouth.

"It's nothing out of the ordinary, Filia," he replied over his cup, deliberately ignoring the spectacle unfolding beside him. Across the table from him sat a man in a black cloak, with shoulder-length purple hair. He said nothing and looked more like he was a part of the crowd at large than party to the strangers sitting with him.

"Hey, that's my chicken, Gourry!", came the red-head's cry as she thumped her blonde companion on the head soundly.

"I saw it first!", he replied in a half-whine, trying to defend the piece of poultry from the red-head's grasp.

"Miss Lina, that's not fair," the black-haired girl chided, grabbing more food from the center of the table. Lina ignored the shorter girl and snatched the chicken out of Gourry's hands, taking a bite before he could protest.

"Fair or not, it's mine now, Amelia!", she crowed, "My germs! My germs!"

"I don't care!", Gourry said, trying to get it back, "I still want it!"

The struggle continued, drawing the attention of the patrons of the tavern. On the other side of the room, a cloaked figure walked though the open door of the tavern. The figure drew little attention to herself , dwarfed in comparison to the side show taking place across the room from her. Silently, the cloaked figure made her way through the room, weaving in and out from between tables, her white robes brushing the floor. She could clearly see who she had come for sitting with the stone man and... was that a Mazoku? Impossible! But no, the other figure seated at that table was clearly a Mazoku. At least it was clear to the one wearing the cloak.

Filia sighed again. This was getting them nowhere, and was certainly not helping their search for the fifth DarkStar weapon. And worst of all, the Mazoku was looking at her. Again. What was he even still following them for, anyway? Some nefarious scheme to kill all of them, no doubt, Filia thought to herself. She was about to tell him to stop looking at her when she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Filia looked up to see a woman wearing a white cloak, with a hood pulled up over her hair.

"You are Filia ul Copt," the newcomer said, less of a question and more of a statement. Filia blinked at her as the other occupants of her table looked at the newcomer strangely.

"Y-yes, I am," she said, "How do you know my name?" The stranger smiled and produced a letter sealed with a wax crest from the folds of her cloak.

"I've come from the Sanctuary to deliver this to you," she replied, "It's an urgent message." Filia took the letter and examined it, studying the crest. It was sure enough the personal crest of Saichuro, the leader of the elder dragons that worshiped the Fire Dragon King. Filia looked up to ask the messenger what it was about, but found that she had already disappeared. Filia slid her thumb underneath the side of the envelope, unfastening the paper from underneath the crest. She removed the letter enclosed and sat the envelope down. She read it, then folded it again and stood up.

"Where are you going?", Zelgadis asked, "What did the letter say?" Filia looked down, as if suddenly snapped out of a reverie by his voice.

"I have to go back to the Sanctuary," she said languidly, "I've been called back. The letter didn't say why, but I won't be able to continue my journey with the rest of you." Zelgadis sat his cup down on the table. Her words had apparently reached Lina, Gourry, and Amelia as well, as they had stopped eating mid-bite. Filia also noticed that the look on Xellos' face had changed as well. He was still wearing his poker face, but it had shifted somehow, making him look more serious.

"That is unfortunate," Zelgadis said. Gourry scratched his head.

"You're leaving?", he asked blankly, "Why?" Lina interrupted before Filia could answer.

"Don't tell me you're quitting on us now," she said, irritated, "I thought you were gonna stick it out with us! Weren't you the one who was so gung-ho about saving the world?" Filia averted her eyes from Lina's determined gaze.

"I really can't help this," Filia answered, "But the letter says that the rest of you will be given another guide, so you should come with me..." By this time, Lina was glaring at her.

"Not on your life!", Lina growled, startling Filia, "Not before I've finished my lunch!" And with that, the spectacle of lunch continued.

Filia sat back down, opening the letter again and looking at it forlornly. She didn't notice as Xellos leaned forward over the table, closer to her. The sound of his voice snapped her back into the here and now.

"So Filia the rebel is going back to the Shrine," he said, smirking, "I'm surprised you're going back so easily. I'd thought more of you." Filia glowered at him.

"It's none of your business, Namagomi," she snapped, turning away. Xellos leaned back in his chair with a 'hmph'.

"Well, at least you'll be out of my hair now," he remarked, crossing his arms over his chest. Filia didn't say anything, opting instead to attempt to ignore him. Of all the nerve... She studied the letter again, wondering why she was being called back. It had to be something important to make her come back from such an important mission. She turned the letter over and the words from it in her mind again and again, waiting on Lina to finish her lunch...

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

Filia looked up at the tall spires of the Fire Dragon King's Sanctuary, golden set against the night sky. It had been her home for as long as she could remember. But now, she had a nagging sense of dread as she looked toward it. She didn't want to leave Lina and the others, that was true. She couldn't be sure why, but something told her that wasn't the only reason she didn't want to come back. The nature of that letter, the lack of explanation... Filia couldn't help but feel they wanted her to come all the way back so it'd be harder for her to leave once they told her why she was here. Filia felt a hand gently clasp onto her shoulder. She jumped a little and looked back. It was only Lina.

"So are you gonna stand here all day or what?", she asked, her tone softer than her words suggested. Filia blinked and turned to Lina.

"Yes, I just couldn't help thinking," she said, walking toward the great doors with Lina and the others, "I don't know why I'm back here at all. I don't have a good feeling about this." They entered the large doors, their steps echoing down the long halls. Filia looked back, noticing that Xellos had opted to stay outside. 'Makes sense,' she thought bitterly, 'I would be too ashamed to show my face to a temple full of dragons, too, if I were him.'

"I have a bad feeling about this, myself," Zelgadis remarked from behind them. Amelia pulled her fists up to her chin.

"Do you think so, Mr. Zelgadis?", she asked, looking around, "But whatever happens, we'll take up for you, Miss Filia!" Filia smiled a little, grateful for that knowledge. They had gone a good ways into the temple by now, having made several turns following Filia. At least she knew where they were going. It was late, and she doubted that Saichuro would be in the great hall now. Instead, she was headed toward his private study. It wasn't late enough for him to be in bed yet. No, it was only about eight o' clock. He would doubtless be in his study, planning tomorrow's duties and such other mundane necessities. Filia's mind wandered again back to why she had been called here. The only thing she could figure is that either something important that involved her was happening or they had a more important job for her to do.

'But what could be more important than this?', she thought, 'The world is at stake here! How could something else be more important?!' She shook her head silently, inwardly angry at her first real journey away from the temple having been interrupted. She should've just kept going with Lina and the others, regardless. But at the same time Filia didn't want to make the Elders angry and realized that they'd eventually track her down if she didn't come back on her own, anyway. Saichuro's study wasn't much farther now, she reminded herself. She swore inwardly. How could she leave this unfinished? There were still answers to questions that Valgaav had posed that she wanted answered, and more importantly, the fate of the world! This was absurd.

Filia stopped, looking at the large oak door with apprehension. The others behind her came to their respective stops, looking in the same direction as her. "So this is it, huh?", Lina asked, "You want us to come in with you?" Filia shook her head, causing her long blonde bangs to shift over her face.

"It's okay, Miss Lina," she replied, "I'll be right back out. I'll let you all know what happens." Filia knocked on the door, looking rather unsure of herself.

"Enter," a commanding voice from the other side of the room said. Filia turned the brass knob and pushed open the heavy door. She entered the room, then quickly shut the door behind her, closing it with a soft 'thud'.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

Fifteen minutes. It had already been fifteen minutes, and Lina was getting impatient. What the bloody hell could they have that was so damned important to talk about that it was taking this long? They had spent all day riding Filia in her dragon form to get here, and she was hungry! If she didn't get some food soon, something would be demolished. Lina looked around. Zelgadis was staring out a nearby window, Amelia was looking at her feet, and Gourry was humming to himself. This was terribly frustrating. Suddenly, the door of the study cracked open. Filia stepped out, looking pale and languid, a little like a watered-down glass of tea. Everyone's attention snapped over to the open door and the obviously disturbed dragon stepping out of it.

"Well," Lina growled impatiently, "What is it? Why are we here?" Filia didn't respond. She only blinked at Lina, her eyes looking wide and frightened.

"Is everyone alright here?", Zelgadis asked, "No one in your family is sick, are they?" Filia gathered enough of her bearings to shake her head.

"No," she finally answered, her mouth feeling like it was full of cotton, "It's nothing like that..." Amelia stepped up to her, her eyes big and pleading.

"What is it, then, Miss Filia?", she begged, "You look so upset!" Filia looked over at her, tears beginning to gather in her large eyes.

"Let's go back outside," Filia said half-heartedly, "I need air. I'll tell you out there." Filia walked back the way they came, not bothering to see if anyone else followed her.

"Miss Filia looks so unhappy!", Amelia said quietly, hoping Filia didn't hear her.

"I don't think it's as much unhappy as it is disturbed," Zelgadis replied. Gourry rubbed his chin.

"Maybe she's just unhappy because she has to stay here now?", Gourry asked, obviously missing the point. Not much longer and they'd be back outside. Filia made sure to stay ahead of the others, not wanting them to catch up to her. If they caught up, they might see her face and how pale it had become. At last she made it to the great wooden doors of the temple and pushed them open, stepping into the chilly night air. Much like she expected, Xellos was sitting outside on a large rock, looking rather smug with himself, as usual. She couldn't tell if he noticed the look on her face, but she knew he'd pick up on the negative emotions practically radiating from her, and she didn't really care. Not now. The others caught up to her momentarily, noticing the death glares she was unwittingly sending toward Xellos.

"Okay, Filia," Lina said, asserting her authority, "What is it?" Filia turned back to look at them, startled. Xellos teleported beside her, obviously interested in her unraveled state.

"Awww, it looks like little Filia is unhappy because she has to stay here," he remarked, a somewhat patronizing overtone inherent, "I can't blame you, you know. I'd be unhappy if I had to stay cooped up here with those dreadfully dull old dragons, too." She ignored the indignant smirk plastered all over his face and began to grind her teeth together. Filia took a deep breath.

"I was called back here," she said haltingly, trying to hold back tears, "Because I've been betrothed to another dragon from the Sanctuary of the Air Dragon King." Amelia's face brightened, and Filia noticed that Xellos' had suddenly taken on that same strange look from earlier in the tavern.

"That's wonderful, Miss Filia!", Amelia chirped, drawing a wary glance from Zelgadis and a confused look from Lina, "You're going to be married! Oh, but why aren't you excited? Weddings are so much fun!" Filia bit her bottom lip and shook her head, tears falling down her cheeks from her screwed-shut eyes. Lina's eyes got a more compassionate look to them.

"Filia, do you even know this dragon?", Lina asked seriously. Filia opened her eyes.

"No," she said finally, the anger in her voice apparent, "I've never heard of him before." Zelgadis folded his arms across his chest.

"Is this sort of thing common in your temple?", he asked, "Arranged marriages and the like, I mean." Filia shook her head again, her fists balled up and shaking.

"No, it's not," she said, sounding angrier, "I don't want to go through with this." Gourry scratched his head.

"Why don't you just run away with us, then?", he asked simply. Xellos fixed him with a hateful look.

"Don't be absurd," he said coldly, "They'd only chase her down and punish her. And she'd have to go through with the wedding anyway." Everyone stopped for a brief moment and looked over at Xellos, wondering what had prompted the sudden burst of protectiveness. An uneasy silence hung in the air for a few more moments. And then...

"So how is this going to happen?", Lina asked, "Are you getting married here?" Filia wiped her eyes and shook her head.

"I have to travel North and East, into the mountains, to their Sanctuary to meet him," she replied, "The ceremony will be there, and that's where I'll live afterwards." Zelgadis shook his head and Amelia's wide eyes filled with big, shiny tears.

"A marriage without love," Amelia sighed, batting back tears, "How unjust... How cruel!" Xellos stepped closer to Filia, making her uneasy.

"I have a question," he said, sounding calm, but close to dangerous, "Why? Why you of all the dragons at this temple, and why do they want you married so badly?" The tone of his voice suggested that he'd already drawn his own conclusion. Filia glanced over at him, trying to force a glare but finding she had little will or need to be angry with him now.

"He said it was because the elders want to strengthen their relationship with the Air Dragon King's followers," she replied half-heartedly, "And since I'm the most skilled priestess my age here, they decided I would make the best bride. I just... Miss Lina, would all of you mind going there with me? I wouldn't feel comfortable going alone, and I wouldn't want strangers being my bridal party." Lina nodded.

"I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say I'd be happy to go with you," Lina said quietly, "We'll think of something, Filia." Filia's face finally took on something that resembled relief after she heard Lina's words.

"Thank you," she said quietly, "We'll head out in the morning. Right now, we can keep rooms in the Sanctuary." There were nods all around.

"That's a pretty good idea," Zelgadis said, "We all need to get some rest if we're going on a long journey tomorrow." There were sounds of tired assent as the others made their way toward the doors of the temple, waiting for Filia to show them to their rooms for the night.

Xellos watched them go, climbing back onto his rock. He didn't believe that lame excuse Saichuro had given Filia for one second. He glared at the closing doors. The elder was making him angry to say the least, as he was sure that there was an ulterior motive in all of this. He suspected he knew what it was, but didn't want to make an idle speculation. Not just yet. But there was another feeling there, too. 'Could it possibly be that I'm jealous?", he asked himself, scoffing at the possibility, 'Not just jealous, but jealous of an overbearing, violent, noisy dragon?' He dismissed the thought, simply content to be aggravated by the guile of the elder.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

Once inside her old room for the night, Filia surveyed the belongings she'd left there when she'd set out to find Luna Inverse, Knight of Cephied. Everything was as it had been left. Smiling softly, she made her way to her vanity, sitting down and rummaging through her jewelry boxes until she found what she was looking for. She held it up in the light, studying it's intricacies. It was an ornately carved locket, embossed with golden dragons and vines. She looked carefully for any scratches or imperfections. No, none. It was just as perfect and new as the day her mother had given it to her. She opened it up to look at the insides. On one side, there was a portrait of herself. The other side was blank.

'One day,' her mother had told her when she'd given her the locket, 'When you're old enough, you will wear this on your wedding day.' She crossly fastened it around her neck, unhappy at the circumstances. A precious family heirloom, used for such a sad end.

Filia commenced getting undressed and went about it quickly, soon in her nightclothes. She took one last look in the vanity mirror, noticing the sad locket laying against her skin. She sighed heavily, crawling into bed and preparing to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2: Something New

**Disclaimer:** Maybe I should give up writing these things and get a Blog, huh? But I don't think anyone actually reads those, anyway, do they? I know I don't. O_o And since everyone HAS to read this to get to the fic, the disclaimers get read more. Wow, never thought of it like THAT before! Anyway, none of these characters are mine. I don't claim them to be. In the immortal words of Stan "The Man" Lee, "'Nuff said!".

Arrangement

Chapter Two: Something New...

by Crystal Dawn Phoenix

They'd gotten an early start on their traveling that morning, so with the help of a short dragon flight, a little after lunch they'd reached the foothills of the mountains. Filia looked up at the gleaming white peaks of the Arahato Mountains. Deep within the mountains lay the Sanctuary of the Air Dragon King. It was the place her new husband lived, and her new home. She sighed, looking down at the pack bird she was riding. Who was she trying to kid? She hated this. 'I feel like I'm being punished for something,' she thought to herself, 'Not by the Gods, but by the temple elders. I just wish I knew what.'

The altitude they were traveling through had already gone up several hundred feet, and as a result, the temperatures around them were dropping. Lina was, of course, complaining loudly about how cold she was, and even Filia had to shiver from time to time. She huddled into her winter traveling cloak. 'Will it be this cold here all the time?', she thought bitterly to herself. She looked back at her companions. Amelia had bundled up and looked to be warm from her place on her pack bird. Zelgadis looked disinterested about the weather. Gourry was shivering due to the fact that Lina kept making him give up various articles of clothing to her. 'At this rate,' Filia thought, 'He'll be entirely naked by the time we reach the Sanctuary.' Xellos wasn't even riding a bird, instead having opted to float along behind the group as usual. 'Makes sense,' Filia thought, scoffing, 'Not like it would physically exert him, anyway. And why in Cephied's name is he still with us?' She turned back around, looking toward the mountains again. At this rate, they could reach the Sanctuary by nightfall. Hopefully they would, too. Filia didn't particularly want to camp out in the cold, snowy mountains. Who could tell how much colder they'd be after dark?

"Miss Filia!", Amelia cried excitedly, pointing ahead of them, "Isn't that it? It looks like the Temple of the Fire Dragon King, only it's white!" Sure enough, in the distance , nestled against the side of a far off mountain, there was a gigantic building with several tall spires reaching toward the sky. There appeared to be a wall and several large buildings surrounding it as well, as though it were its own little town. Filia drew a sharp breath in. It was almost so white it was blinding! Suddenly, Xellos popped up beside Filia's bird, looking in the same direction as everyone else.

"It looks like it was starched a little too much," Xellos said dryly, "You'll fit right in." Filia glared down at him. He seemed to be a little aggravated about something.

"I wouldn't expect a Mazoku to understand the virtues of being refined," she said haughtily, "I'm sure the dragons who live there will make you look even lowlier than you already do!" The corner of Xellos' mouth twitched. Filia noted with some satisfaction that her last comment had stung. She reasoned that there might be one upside to this after all: she wouldn't have to deal with Xellos anymore. Even better, if he started bothering her once they got to the Sanctuary, her husband could take up for her. A grin stretched its way across Filia's face. As much as she wasn't looking forward to this, she couldn't help but hope her husband would be powerful enough to wipe that smug grin off Xellos' face.

Her husband. The joy of making a dent in Xellos' smiling facade was cut short by that terrible sinking feeling she'd been having all day. 'Me, a little do-nothing housewife,' she thought despondently, 'I hate this...'

"Oh!", Lina exclaimed from her place on her pack bird, "There it is! Let's hurry up and get there already! I can't feel my toes and I'm starving!" She spurred the bird on with a raucous "Yah!", and broke it out into a full gallop toward the tall white spires in the distance. Gourry did likewise, his eyes widening in surprise.

"Hey, Lina!", he called after her, "Don't leave me behind!" His bird was soon nothing more than a cloud of snow dust as well. Zelgadis sighed and shook his head.

"I suppose we'd better try to keep up with them," he said, snapping the reigns on his bird, "H-yah!" He took off like a shot, Amelia close behind. Filia looked back to find Xellos still floating along behind her. He opened one eye at her and gave her a conceited little smirk, making her very nervous. She tightened her grip on her bird's reigns and snapped them hard.

"You guys!", she called, racing her bird after the others, "Don't leave me back here!" There were times that Mazoku just creeped her out to no end.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

The sky was black now, almost like a sheet of velvet embroidered with several hundred small diamonds for stars. There was a cold wind blowing, almost cutting through their thick winter cloaks. They had finally reached a small hill overlooking the gates to the giant walls of the Sanctuary. There were two large Golden Dragons with spears standing guard on either side. Lina's face brightened up.

"We're here!", she exclaimed, "Now they can feed us! Alright!" She was wearing most of Gourry's winter weather clothes by now, leaving him with nothing more than his pants, shoes, and body armor. She spurred her nearly exhausted bird on, ice forming on its beak from its breath. The rest of the gang followed suit, galloping down the hill and heading toward the gates. They pulled to a stop as the guards pointed their spears toward them.

"Halt!", they spoke, "State your business here." Amelia blanched, but Filia dismounted her bird and strode to the front of the group.

"My name is Filia ul Copt," she stated firmly, "I've come from the Sanctuary of the Fire Dragon King." The guards looked at each other, then back down at her. They lowered their spears.

"We've been expecting you," one of them said, "Come in. The High Elder will show you your chamber." Filia pushed open the gates and walked through, Lina and the others dismounting and following. The dragons pointed their spears at them. "What is your business here?", they asked gruffly.

"They're with me," Filia said, turning back, "I have invited them to come with me." Reluctantly, the guards lowered their spears again.

"Very well," one said, "We shall give these humans accommodations." Lina and the others walked between them, Lina giving one of the guards a good-natured pat on his leg.

"That's more like it!", she said, "Glad to know you see our point of view!" She gave them a chuckle and walked in, the others following close behind. Zelgadis shook his head, grumbling, and Amelia gave the dragons a sheepish look. Gourry shivered, but tried to smile politely at them anyway. Xellos simply smiled at them. As he was about to walk through the gates, the dragons once again pointed their spears, this time directly at Xellos.

"Not you," one of the guards said, "You are not welcome here." Xellos smiled up at them innocently.

"Now that's not nice," he said sweetly, "Why would I not be welcome here?" The guards seemed to be glaring at him now.

"You know very well why, Beast Priest," one of them said, "Priestess of the Fire Dragon King, is this... creature with your party?" Filia allowed herself a small smile for once that night.

"No, it's not," she said pointedly, ignoring the little nagging voice from her conscience. She turned and walked toward the main temple, expecting the others to follow. Xellos' expression didn't change except for the fact that he opened his eyes. They bespoke volumes while the rest of his features remained the same. If Filia had turned around, she would have found that he was, in fact, quite unhappy at the moment. Lina gave him a wave, following Filia.

"Sorry about that, Xellos," she said, "Now, where's the food?" A second later, Xellos phased out of sight. Amelia caught up to Filia, a scolding look in her eyes.

"Miss Filia!", Amelia said, "That was wrong! He wanted to see you off, too!" Filia thrust her nose into the air.

"It's only what he deserved," she remarked, glad to finally be rid of him for once, "And besides, if I'd have let him come along, it would only have caused trouble. It's not like a temple full of dragons would exactly welcome his presence."

"I agree," Zelgadis spoke up, "Although I doubt that's the last you'll see of him. If I know him, he'll find a way to cause trouble." Amelia's eyes were full of sympathy.

"You, too, Mr. Zelgadis?", she asked, sighing. Might as well give up that fight. Besides, it was clear that Zelgadis was right. If Xellos wanted in bad enough, a couple of dragons with spears wouldn't get in his way. He could simply teleport himself in whenever he felt like it.

They hadn't gone very far toward the main temple before they came across an older looking dragon with white hair and a short beard. "Hello, there," he said, a warm tone in his voice, "You wouldn't be the Priestess from the Sanctuary of the Fire Dragon King, would you?" Filia stopped walking, the others halting in step behind her.

"Yes, I am," she replied. The older dragon smiled and held out a hand to her.

"I am the High Elder of this temple," the older one said, as she stretched her hand out to take his, "I'd like to welcome you here. Are these humans companions of yours?" Filia shook the elder's hand, blinking.

"Ah, yes they are," she replied, "They're going to be my... uhm, my wedding party." It was still a hard concept for her to grasp. Wedding party. She shook her head loose of those thoughts.

"Come right in, then," he said, motioning toward the main temple and taking a step back, "You don't want to catch cold out here in this weather! We shall find your companions rooms for the night and you shall be taken to your chambers for the evening." Lina, a strained smile on her face, strode up beside the elder, tapping him on the shoulder.

"Eh, excuse me, High Elder," she said expectantly, "But aren't you going to feed us anything?" There was a dangerous tone in her voice at the last question, one suggesting that if she didn't get anything to eat soon, the elder just might be eating a Dragon Slave. The old dragon smiled at her.

"I'm sorry, it must have slipped my mind," he said warmly, "Of course, we'll give you something to eat. It must have been a long journey for you." Lina put on her best cute smile.

"Oh, you bet!", she said, using a conversational tone, "So, how about that food now?" The elder opened the doors to the main temple, motioning for them to step inside.

"I'll take you to the main dining hall," he said, "Once we're there, I can introduce Miss Filia to her betrothed." Filia smiled weakly, but felt like beating something with her mace. This whole situation had her incredibly frustrated. They walked down the long hallways, looking at the decorations. Most of them were done in silver or crystal. There were a few statues or other such sculptures and several ornate tapestries bedecking the walls. Filia found the decor to be a bit stuffy and perhaps a little too rich to be in a temple. All in all, not her style.

Eventually, they reached a large set of doors. The High Elder pushed them open, revealing a lavishly decorated banquet hall. Filia reasoned it was large enough to fit an army into. Or at least enough food to feed Lina and Gourry. The long table that set in the middle of the room was barren at the moment, as they had clearly not been planning on the hungry humans to be with Filia. The elder motioned toward the long table in the center of the room.

"All of you, go ahead and have a seat," he said politely, "I'll have our cooks make you something to eat here shortly. I shall also send for your betrothed, Miss Filia. Until then, make yourselves at home."

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

"Finally!", Lina exclaimed, having acquired a fork and knife from the table settings, "It's about time you got back here with the food!" The robed cooks distributed the food that was weighing down their heavily laden arms across the table. One of them nearly lost an arm as Lina leapt for the food he was carrying. Another almost met a similar fate as Gourry launched himself at the food he was carrying.

Filia permitted herself a smile at their antics. She was really going to miss those two. She was so busy watching them that she didn't notice the High Elder return. She was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts by the elder's hand coming to rest on her shoulder. She looked up, surprised.

"Miss Filia," the elder said, "I've brought your fiancé back with me. He's very anxious to meet you." Filia stood up, looking around.

"Where is he at?", Filia asked, trying to find her new husband amidst the flurry of cooks. The elder turned toward the door.

"Alara?", he asked, "Would you come in here, please? She's waiting for you." A young dragon, who appeared to be about Filia's age, perhaps a little older, walked into the hall. He was dressed in a white tunic with gold trimmings about the hem and the neck and had a white cape which nearly dusted the floor. He wore white pants and white boots, also trimmed in gold vining. His hair was white and thin, hanging down his back with bangs that hung down nearly into his gold eyes. Filia thought perhaps she would go snowblind looking at him. He saw Filia and smiled, perhaps a little bit predatorily. Filia shivered. There was something about the way he was looking at her that unsettled her, almost like he thought she was something sweet to eat. "I'll leave you two to get acquainted," the elder said, stepping back out of the room. Alara reached out and took both of Filia's hands in his.

"I've been looking forward to meeting you," he said, his voice slightly dangerous, "I've been told so much about you in letters from your temple's elder, Saichuro. Filia, is it?" Filia nodded, not completely at ease with his touch.

"Yes, my name is Filia," she said firmly, "And you must be Alara." He smiled charmingly and pulled her chair away from the table, seating her in it. He sat down beside her, regarding her human companions. Already Zelgadis was watching him suspiciously. 'So I'm not the only one who distrusts him?', she thought.

"So, these are the humans you've been traveling with?", Alara asked, "How quaint." Lina, Gourry, and Amelia were totally oblivious to anything he might say, so absorbed in their meal were they. Zelgadis, on the other hand, was watching him intently from across his cup of coffee. Alara put a hand on Filia's thigh, making her even more uncomfortable as he smiled. "Why don't you come up to my room here in a little while?", he invited, "That way, we can get to know each other better without your little human friends in the way." Filia smiled politely, perhaps a little demeaningly, and removed his hand from her leg.

"I don't find them to be in the way of anything," she said sweetly, trying her best not to scream in frustration, "And I'm rather tired from my journey. I'm afraid it will have to wait until another time." There was a slight tint of anger on his face for a second before he hid it with a smile.

"Well, then," he said, trying another tactic, "Why don't we have dinner tomorrow evening? You'll have a busy day tomorrow, what with preparing for the wedding and all. We've already employed dress-makers to fit you with your wedding gown tomorrow morning. Until then, you will want to go to your room to rest." Filia brightened a little. She'd be glad to be away from him as soon as she could.

"Of course," she said, "We're all very tired." Alara stood, taking her hand and pulling her up with him.

"Very well, then," he said, "I shall see you to your room." Filia looked back at her companions, who were still eating, or in Zelgadis' case, glaring.

"But," she protested, "They're not through eating!" Alara placed an arm around her waist and began to lead her away from the table.

"That's quite alright," he replied, "Their rooms will not be near yours. We'll let them finish their meals, then we'll show them to their own rooms. In the meantime, you can get your rest." Filia wanted to protest, but could find nothing that was truly worthy of complaint. He led her out of the dining hall and into the hallway. Even though she told herself that everything was going well so far, she still couldn't shake a general feeling of unease and disquiet.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

Filia ran her brush through her hair. She'd thankfully been able to avoid giving Alara a goodnight kiss and had ducked into her new chambers quickly. Now she sat before her exquisite gold-rimmed glass vanity, dressed only in a long slip, and getting ready for sleep. This whole day had been a waste, in her opinion. She disliked this temple. It felt so cold, and not only because of the weather outside. She disliked this arrangement. Being a mail order bride was the last thing she'd ever dreamed would happen to her on her journeys with Lina. And most of all, she hated her fiancé. 'He's so... pushy!', she thought indignantly, 'And the way he looks at me... Like he owns me or something!' She slammed the brush down on the vanity, the faintest fear of breaking the delicate glass structure passing through her mind. "I'd be better off marrying Xellos!", she yelled in frustration.

"You rang?", a familiar and annoying voice chimed from behind her. She blushed fiercely, covering her chest with her arms, and turned around. Sure enough, Xellos was leaning against one of her white walls, arms crossed and looking smug.

"No, I didn't," she huffed, watching him make himself at home. He walked to one of the armchairs present in the room and had a seat, pulling an ottoman over to rest his feet on. Watching him act like he was right at home in her chambers was infuriating her to no end.

"At any rate," he said, putting his arms behind his head and leaning back, "You're clearly not enjoying yourself here. I suppose it's divine justice for leaving me at the gate like that. How do you like your new husband?" There was perhaps a note of bitterness in his voice at the last question. Filia turned her back to him.

"He's just fine," she said angrily, "And it's none of your business." Xellos grinned, obviously straining not to get angry.

"What was it you just said?", he asked, sounding short tempered, "Wasn't it 'I'd be better off marrying Xellos'? And when he led you in here, you were quite put off by his advances."

"So what if I was?", she asked angrily, "There's nothing I can do about it now, and it's none of your conc-..." She stopped speaking, turning around to look at him wide eyed. "You were spying on me!?!", she asked, finally realizing what he'd just said, "How dare you!?" Xellos smiled.

"Spying on you?", he asked innocently, "Well, yes, I suppose you could call it that. Really, now. It's nothing to get that upset over. I was simply worried over you." Filia blinked, losing half her anger.

"Worried?", she asked, "What for? What could you care what happens to me?" He opened one eye and gave her a wag of his finger.

"Now, that, of course," he replied teasingly, "Is a secret. But just out of curiosity, what do you intend to do about your 'charming' new... husband?" He nearly spat out the last word, causing Filia to blink. Could it be that he didn't like Alara?

"Well, what _can_ I do about him?", she asked angrily, "I'm kind of stuck here."

"Well," he replied, his voice acquiring an alluring note as it softened, "I could always kill him for you..." Filia's eyes widened.

"Xellos!", she exclaimed, scolding, "You can't be serious!" However, the look in his eyes told her he was. "No!", she scolded, "I won't let you kill anyone!" Xellos shut both his eyes again and smiled.

"You never let me have any fun!", he said, imitating a henpecked husband. However, it seemed like Filia was ignoring him now. She was studying her knees like they were the most interesting things she'd ever seen.

"I guess," she said quietly, "I guess I'll just have to learn to live with him..." Xellos stood, not quite content with being ignored. Here he was, a dangerous Mazoku, feared and respected amongst dragons and sometimes men alike, in the room of a pretty girl, late at night, and she didn't even have the sense to pay attention to him? Preposterous!

"So," Xellos said, causing her to snap her head up and look at him, "Did you ever find out why exactly Saichuro decided to put you through this?" Filia blinked, confused.

"I already told you why," she replied, "They want to improve relations with this temple." Xellos opened an eye at her.

"Please, Filia," he said demeaningly, "There's more to it than that. He has some ulterior motive for doing this." Filia stared at him, as if deep in thought.

"You know," she said quietly, "I had thought that, myself." Xellos smiled at her.

"Well, then," he said happily, "Tomorrow, when your betrothed takes you to dinner, why don't you ask him?" Filia blinked in surprise.

"I could do that," she said, "If anyone would know, it'd be him... But... what are you going to do, Xellos?" There was suspicion in her voice. She fully expected him to cause some sort of trouble.

"Hmm?", he said, smiling innocently, "I'm only going to poke around this temple, see if I can find any information. By the way... You never answered my question..." Filia looked at him curiously.

"What question?", she asked suspiciously.

"Do you want my help?", he asked smugly, "You never told me if you want my help or not." Filia eyed him suspiciously.

"What's the catch?", she asked, "There's got to be some stipulation on this..." Xellos sighed.

"Just answer my question," he said firmly, "Do you want out of this?" Filia looked down at the floor.

"Yes," she said quietly. Xellos smiled sunnily.

"Well, then," he said, "That's all I wanted to know!" With that, he disappeared, leaving Filia to ponder his strange actions.

"Xellos!", she yelled, standing, "What are you going to do!?" There was no response. 'It's too late,' she thought, 'He's already gone.' She walked over to her bed, turning back the covers in frustration. Secretly, however, she was breathing a sigh of relief. Somehow, when Xellos had offered to get her out of this, she felt strangely reassured. Maybe tomorrow would go better?


	3. Chapter 3: Something Borrowed

**Disclaimer:** Well, after much deliberation, I've decided to go ahead and finish this before starting my torrid career as a romance writer for Harlequin. Or a purveyor of lemon fics. Whichever comes first. But anyway, I don't own any of the characters I'm writing with. I don't claim to. That being said and done, on with the show!

Arrangement

Chapter Three: Something Borrowed...

by Crystal Dawn Phoenix

"Ouch!", Filia exclaimed. Once again, one of the careless seamstresses had pricked her with one of their needles. She was already tired from a restless night. It was hard enough being able to sleep in a new, strange place, but besides that, it was cold in her room. And aside from that, she was also somewhat afraid that Xellos, or worse, Alara, would come back to her room. She sighed, irritated with the busy seamstresses who buzzed around her like a swarm of bees. They were pinning her white satin skirts up around her waist. They'd already fitted her with the blouse of the dress and were now fitting the skirt. Filia was beginning to feel dizzy from all the white they were surrounding her with.

She couldn't wait until they were done with the fitting. Perhaps she could see Lina and Amelia for lunch? That would make her feel a little better. But where had they been taken to stay? She really had no clue. She assumed they were being fitted with bridesmaids dresses right about now. She found herself hoping very hard that their dresses weren't white as well. 'What other color could they possibly be?', she thought bitterly, 'Xellos had better not be lying. I'm getting really sick of being here.' The gravity of her situation began to sicken her again. She was depending on someone who had a reputation for slaughtering her kind with abandon to rescue her like a damsel in distress. This was grave indeed.

"Miss Filia," one of the seamstresses said sternly, "Would you stand still? It's impossible to fit you if you keep swaying like that!" Filia silently wished she had her mace underneath this skirt and forced herself to smile.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, nearly gritting her teeth, "I suppose I must be getting tired." The seamstresses ignored her and kept about their business, measuring, cutting, and poking to their hearts' content 'What are the others doing right now?', Filia wondered to herself, miserably, 'Whatever it is, I'm sure they're having a better time than I am...'

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

"OWWW!", Lina howled, swatting at the seamstress who had poked her, "Watch where you stick those needles of yours!" She was growing quickly frustrated with the prodding, poking, and general annoyance that comes with being fitted for clothes. Amelia didn't look to be enjoying herself much either. Lina was sure she had to be used to this sort of thing, being a princess and all. Princesses went to formal functions all the time, so naturally they'd need to get stitched into new clothes all the time. Lina was also sure the guys weren't doing much better. Even so, tuxedos were little more than interchangeable, so all they'd have to really put up with would be the measuring. "When is this going to be over!?", she yelled at the whirring seamstresses, frustrated, "This is boring!" Amelia looked over at her.

"Well, Miss Lina," she said, trying to placate her, "Look on the bright side - at least the dresses aren't white." Lina didn't look too enthused over that revelation.

It was true though; the dresses weren't white. They were made from satin in a metallic gold color. Lina wasn't exactly sure where they could've gotten this color dye from, but she was certain it had to have been expensive. Expensive though it may have been, it wasn't the best of colors to wear. The dresses that were taking shape on their bodies right now looked to be quite gaudy and bright. The color and shape failed to compliment either Lina or Amelia.

"That's true, but," Lina reasoned, "Is it really that much better!? This color is horrible!" Amelia smiled sheepishly as the seamstresses stopped to look at Lina.

"Master Alara picked the colors out," one of the seamstresses finally said, "It is his wedding, after all." Lina tapped her foot angrily.

"So what?", she huffed, "Did Filia even get a say on what she wanted?" The seamstresses went back to work, overlooking the sudden outburst.

"Yeah," Amelia chimed in, "I'm sure she wouldn't have chosen this color. It's tacky!" The seamstresses didn't quit moving. Instead, they began to sew and fit faster. "I don't think they're listening to us anymore, Miss Lina," Amelia said dejectedly.

"Neither do I," Lina said quietly, "Do you get the feeling we're being totally blown off by the dragons here?" Amelia looked up at her.

"You mean, you felt that way, too?", Amelia responded, "I feel bad for Filia. She's going to have to spend the rest of her life here." Lina was momentarily pricked by another pin, causing her to 'inadvertently' kick the guilty seamstress.

"I see what you mean," Lina replied, "I think I'd go nuts if I had to spend the rest of my life here!"

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

The shadows were so hard to find in this place. Lurking was nowhere near as easy here as it was in the outside world. Among humans, there were always lots of shady places to lose your face, your soul even. Here, there was so much light and blaring whiteness that even the shadows were white. Xellos faded out of a dimly shadowed corner, melting out of the semi-blackness and into the light. He was in Alara's room now, searching for any letters or correspondences from Saichuro.

This place was nothing but bad for him. Underneath the veneer of perfection, there seemed to be an underlying sickness, a hypocrisy, permeating the temple. And while he normally wouldn't object to such a deceitful air, this seemed simply unhealthy. More than anything else, it worried him for Filia. He wasn't exactly sure why he should worry over someone so arrogant and irritating. But the fact was, he did worry for her. Especially when she was in the company of that white-haired dragon.

That was another thing that had been nagging at him. That white-haired dragon had immediately begun to act as though Filia belonged to him, as though she were his own personal property to do with as he pleased. Xellos had no doubts that Alara was stronger than Filia and could overpower her easily. Should he decide he wanted to do anything dishonorable to her, she would be unable to stop him. At that point, Xellos would probably have to reveal himself, and that would cause a whole new slew of problems.

Xellos' grip on his staff tightened. 'Why is this frustrating me so?', he thought to himself, 'I feel like that whelp is... moving in on my territory...' That seemed like a plausible enough explanation. He had come to see Filia as his own personal form of amusement recently. Making her angry had become something of a rather enjoyable game to him. In fact, it had almost become like he considered her _his_ dragon. So, of course, having someone else treat her so harshly was infuriating.

'I shall simply have to keep a very close eye on her,' he thought to himself, 'A very close eye...' He opened a drawer in a nearby wardrobe, looking for any letters or papers he could find. None. He continued searching, hoping there was something from Saichuro in the youth's possession.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

"So," Alara said, holding up his wine glass, "Tell me a little about yourself, Filia, dear." Filia looked up at him, momentarily abandoning poking at her dinner salad. She really didn't feel like chit-chatting with him.

"Well, you already know I come from the Sanctuary of the Fire Dragon King," she said, "What else do you want to know?" It was obvious Alara was trying to turn on the charm. However, it wasn't working that well. He let his mask slip for a second, showing a momentary flash of anger at her flippancy, before the charming facade returned.

"For starters," he said, "What about those humans you were traveling with? They're rather... crude, aren't they?" Filia put down her fork, trying to stay calm. "When we're married," Alara continued, "You won't associate with creatures so far beneath us. It's improper." The corner of Filia's mouth twitched. It was true, most dragons were raised to hold a sense of superiority over humans, but most of them would never come right out and say it. And during Filia's travels, she'd come to think of Lina and the others as just her 'friends' instead of mere 'humans'. Most important of all, who did he think he was to tell her who her friends could and couldn't be?

"Those four are my friends," she said through gritted teeth, "I don't think they're creatures or beneath us at all!" She pushed her plate away from her. Once again, the anger flashed across Alara's face before being replaced by a carefully crafted mask of charm.

"And wasn't there someone else traveling with you?", he asked, forcing a smile, "Someone you're not telling me about?" Filia could feel anger rising unbidden in her mind.

"What of it?", she asked tensely, "Must you know everyone I've met in my travels?" His questions were becoming bothersome and prying.

"Well, I had heard that you arrived with one other person," Alara replied, not missing a beat, "I was just curious where they'd gotten off to." Filia glared at him, sensing that he was lying. But if that were true, how would he know about Xellos? She pushed her chair back from the table.

"I think I've lost my appetite," Filia said, standing, "I'll see myself back to my room." Alara stood as well, moving quickly around to Filia's side of the table. He took her wrist quickly and smiled.

"Why don't you stay here for a drink, or coffee?", he invited, "Maybe a cup of tea?" The tone of his voice suggested that it was more of a command than a friendly offering. Filia yanked her wrists free and begrudgingly had a seat on Alara's sofa, staring sullenly at the coffee table in front of her.

'It wouldn't be so bad,' she reasoned, 'If he hadn't insisted on having dinner in his own private chambers. I feel like he's trying to force me into bed!' She crossed her arms angrily and watched as Alara sat a kettle full of tea onto his wood stove. He momentarily left the kettle on the heat and sat down beside Filia. In her opinion, he was just a little bit too close for comfort. Alara smiled, trying to disarm the mistrustful feelings Filia obviously felt toward him.

"Now, now," he said, smiling falsely, "There's no need to be so defensive. I was only concerned for your welfare, that's all. I wouldn't want to see my wife taking up with... bad company, you know." He placed his hand on her thigh, making her want to scoot away from him, only to find she was already against the armrest of the couch. His other hand moved up and touched the side of her face, tilting it over to look at him. Alara looked as though he was inspecting her. "Why don't we get to know each other a little better?", he queried, smiling, "I think we should get... used to each other, seeing as how we'll be spending the rest of our lives together..." He closed in on Filia, kissing her hungrily.

Filia's eyes shot wide open in shock. His kiss was deep, but stiff and forceful. For a moment, Filia could have sworn the shadows of the room were coming alive and watching her. She moved her hands up to his chest, trying to push him away. He wasn't budging. Instead, he began kissing her harder. She made a muffled noise of protest, before being quieted by his tongue finding its way into her mouth. Filia was fuming by this time. She bit down on his tongue hard, tasting the slightest hint of blood as he pulled away, snarling. Alara glared at her for a split second, bringing a hand to his lip. He pulled his hand back to find blood on his fingers. There was an angry glare before he backhanded her, sending her tumbling off the couch and into the floor.

Filia pushed herself into a sitting position in the floor before bringing a hand up to feel the hot, stinging strike on her cheek. "What is your problem!?", he roared at her, standing up from the couch, "Ever since you arrived here, you've wanted nothing to do with me! I've given you a wonderful place to sleep, more than enough food to eat, and I've even suffered those idiot humans you brought with you! And this is how you repay me!?" He reached down and picked her up off the ground by the collar of her dress, shaking her once he got her standing. "I'm your husband, for Cephied's sake!", he snarled, trying to stare her down, "What is it? Am I not good enough for you!?" Once again, the shadows seemed to come alive and tense up. Alara let go of her, causing her to stumble backwards for a few paces before regaining her balance. She glared at him, ready to use her mace on his head. "Who would be good enough, then?", Alara asked angrily, stalking over to a desk and jerking a drawer open, "A human man perhaps? A Mazoku!?" He rummaged through the drawers for a moment, finally producing several letters sealed with a broken waxen seal. He threw them at a stunned Filia, causing her to catch them rather clumsily. "Don't think I don't know what's going on," he said in a low, dangerous voice, "I was told all about it by your temple's elder. I didn't want to believe it at first, but it's become blaringly clear to me that he was right! Read what is in those letters, then tell me if you can deny it!" Filia ignored the letters and put her hands on her hips, glaring.

"What are you talking about!?", Filia demanded loudly, "I have no idea what you're going on about! Are you trying to insinuate that I'm seeing someone!?" He stalked back over to her, staring the brassy woman down again. Filia was certain he would try to strike her again, but she didn't care.

"No," Alara replied, "I'm saying you're cavorting with Mazoku, you little slut! And not just any Mazoku, either, but that damnable Beast Priest you arrived here with!" Filia couldn't believe what she was hearing, but she tried not to let it show. Instead, she concentrated on trying to intimidate Alara as much as he was trying to impose on her.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," Filia replied coldly, "I don't cavort with anyone, let alone him. And just so you know, Xellos only follows Miss Lina around, not me." Alara glared down at her.

"Oh, so it's 'Xellos' now, is it?", he asked, snarling, "You should feel privileged I even agreed to this marriage, you little tramp. I doubt any other dragon would ever marry you." Filia hissed under her breath.

"I'm going to my room now," she said harshly, "I'll see you at the wedding." She turned around and stalked out of the room, slamming Alara's door behind her. The shadows in the room seemed to relax and go limp as soon as the door closed.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

"Of all the nerve!", Filia screeched, flinging the thick envelopes against her bed, "Trying to tell me I've been sleeping with Xellos, of all people!?" She practically tore off her dress and threw it into the floor, before grabbing the nightgown on the end of her bed. Still fuming, she pulled it over her head and down over her bare chest.

"As I recall," she heard a distinctly male voice come from across the room, "He said 'cavorting'. That leads me to imagine something more along the lines of a drunken orgy than an actual tryst." Filia's face turned red as she thrust the hem of the nightgown into her lap.

"I didn't ask you, you big pervert!", she yelled back, picking up a pillow and tossing it at Xellos, who was now sitting at her vanity, "Don't you have anything better to do than spy on me all the time?!" He adopted a mock-thoughtful look for a moment.

"Actually," he said levelly, "No, I don't." Filia, still fuming, stalked over to the vanity Xellos was sitting in front of, and grabbed the brush off the surface. She jerked the brush angrily through her hair, not really in the mood to deal with him.

"What do you want, Xellos?", she asked curtly, "And what were you spying on me for?" He gave her a crooked smile.

"Well, to be perfectly honest," he said, watching her hair fall about her shoulders, "I suspected your... fiancé... might try something like what just happened..." Filia gave him a wicked smile as she continued brushing her hair.

"Oh, so it takes one to know one, huh?", she said, her voice acidic. The corner of Xellos' eye twitched, and Filia knew she had hit a nerve. "Anyway," she continued, finishing with the brush and placing it back on the vanity, "What do you want?" Xellos adopted a self-satisfied grin and reached inside his cloak, producing some papers.

"I simply wanted to show you this," he said, giving the papers over to her, "Copies of the correspondences between your temple and this one regarding your... marriage. I found them in the High Elder's study." Filia grabbed the papers and rifled through them. She turned around and walked back to her bed, sitting down on the edge. Reading, the bits and pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. As it turned out, Alara had been correct, although he had been somewhat exaggerating. Yes, Saichuro was afraid of Xellos' influence on the young dragon priestess, but not exactly to the extent that Alara had suggested. There was some interesting information about Alara himself, as well.

It seemed that while Filia's elders had been worried about the Mazoku's influence over her, Alara's elders had been worried over him as well. His arrogant attitude and imposing demeanor were causing problems within the temple. There had apparently been several incidences of him inciting fights with other young priests. The elders had come to the conclusion that perhaps if he were to be married, his nature would settle down, and he would become much less trouble to everyone. However, the problem with this line of thought was in finding him a bride. As a matter of fact, it had come to the point that none of the young ladies at the temple would even consider going near him. The solution that had occurred to them seemed remarkably simple: take the two temples' problem children and have them wed. Alara would settle down and become a calm member of the temple and the Mazoku would leave Filia alone.

"Then...", Filia said, eyes wide, lowering the letter into her lap, "They knew he was like this? Saichuro knew he was going to behave this way?" Xellos nodded and turned to look at his reflection in her vanity mirror.

"That's the conclusion I gathered," he said, seeming rather bored, "So what's in those letters he gave to you?" Filia blinked. Alara's letters! She'd forgotten all about them! She put the copies down and picked up the fat envelopes, opening them and tearing out their contents. These were only letters Saichuro had written in response to the young dragon priest. Apparently, most of the letters were only telling Alara about Filia's life, her family, her training, her personality. Things that matchmakers generally tell their prospective matches. Then there were the pages detailing her recent travels with Lina and the others. One in particular gave Alara some sketchy details about Xellos, as well as giving Saichuro's suspicions about the Mazoku's intentions. So that was where he got the notion she'd been sleeping with Xellos! Filia, turning red in the face with anger, balled up the offending letter and tossed it over her shoulder.

"Preposterous!", she shrieked as Xellos appeared on the bed behind her, catching the paper and smoothing it out so he could read it. While under normal circumstances, she would've protested heavily at Xellos being so near to her, and particularly on a bed, she ignored him, opting instead to huff in anger at the current situation.

Xellos, meanwhile, read the letter with some interest. "So, he really did think we were...?", he said, his expression amused. He suddenly began laughing, tossing the letter away and leaning back against the wall adjacent to Filia's bed. Filia turned around to give him a nasty glare.

"What are you laughing at, Xellos?", she snapped, red with anger, "What's so funny?" He cracked an eye open at her, favoring her with a mischievous grin.

"Well, no offense, sunshine," he said, taking a piece of her hair and twirling it around one of his fingers, "But, I really don't think you could handle me." It was truly an amusing thought for Xellos, and not one that he hadn't entertained before.

Filia's face was still red, only this time, it was from something other than anger. "Nor would I want to," she finally spat out, turning her back to him again. "Anyway," she finally said, eager to change the subject, "What do you propose we do about this wedding? It's tomorrow, you know." Xellos adopted a thoughtful look for a moment before smiling sunnily.

"Well," he said mischievously, "You could always sleep with me for real. Then when Alara found out, he wouldn't want to be married to you." Filia gritted her teeth.

"Yes," she said sarcastically, "And when everyone else found out, I'd be punished horribly for sleeping with a Mazoku."

"It could be our little secret," he said seductively into her ear. Filia reasoned that it might have been quite an alluring situation if he wasn't being so ridiculous. She ground her teeth together.

"That would defeat the purpose, then, wouldn't it?", she muttered angrily. Xellos continued smiling.

"Why, yes, I think it would!", he said, as though he'd just been hit with a revelation, "But it would be fun, neh?"

"And anyway," Filia said, ignoring his last little comment, "I thought I wouldn't be able to 'handle you'?" Faster than the eye could see, Xellos leaned across Filia's shoulder and gave her a little peck on the cheek.

"I didn't say you couldn't try," he whispered, grinning like a cat. He pulled away from her shoulder, enjoying her conflictingly angry, shocked, embarrassed, and flattered emotions. Filia simply sat there, in something akin to shock, and brought a hand to her cheek where she'd just been kissed. "At any rate," Xellos continued, "Don't worry too much. I have everything taken care of. You should rest right now." Filia blinked slowly.

"If you have everything taken care of, I should really start worrying!", she exclaimed suddenly, turning around to meet Xellos. Too late. He was already gone. Filia drooped. "Oh no," she said, the color suddenly draining out of her face, "I have such a bad feeling about this..."

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

Xellos retreated for the evening, leaving Filia to get her rest. He had a rather lovely plan for dealing with all of this. But in the meantime, he smiled to himself. She was so unbearably cute when she was mad or embarrassed! There was no way he'd let her get married off now, especially to someone who was as unfit as Alara. Underneath it all, he was rather angry with the elders for setting this all up, and particularly with Saichuro for making assumptions about him. Yes, he would definitely ruin this wedding well, probably bringing this temple down with it. Smirking, he rubbed his hands together in anticipation.


	4. Chapter 4: Something Blue

**Disclaimer:** Well, this story's finally coming to its close. Allow me to be cheesy enough to go "What will happen to our intrepid heroes? Will Filia get married to an ass? Will Lina beat some Golden Dragons senseless? Will Gourry come away from this fully clothed?" Now allow me to be cheesy enough to also say "None of these fabulous characters belong to me, nor will they ever."

Arrangement

Chapter Four: Something Blue...

By Crystal Dawn Phoenix

Filia burrowed under her thick comforters and blankets more. It was cold in her room, and she was still asleep. She didn't want to wake up, but she could feel waking coming over her. She was in the middle of an especially interesting dream, involving Xellos, Alara, a battle axe, wedding lingerie, and butterscotch pudding. She rolled over, a cruel smile worthy of Lina herself plastered all over her face.

"Oh, he he," Filia giggled, drooling a little in her sleep, "Thassa big axe... Whatcha go'n do with it?" She snorted and snickered in her sleep. Suddenly, Xellos appeared beside her bed in a flash of black. He bent over, ready to wake her up, and stopped to listen. "Tee hee!", she giggled, "Lemme take a swing at'im! I feel so naughty!" Xellos face faulted, then picked himself up off the floor, grinning.

"Oh, I see!", he said mischievously, "I suppose someone so uptight while she's awake has to get her frustrations out somehow." He was about to poke her to wake her up when her eyes fluttered open with a yawn. She stretched her arms over her head, shutting her eyes and smiling lazily. Xellos took the liberty of sitting on the edge of her bed. Filia sighed softly and looked like she was about to go back to sleep. "Well," Xellos said, startling her awake, "Someone was having a nice dream, from the sounds of it." He grinned smugly at Filia as she began to blush heavily, remembering exactly what it was she was just dreaming. "Would you like to tell me about it?", Xellos asked, chiperly. Filia looked up at him shyly.

"Well," she said, blushing, "It was you and me and Alara..." Xellos' eyebrow quirked up as he gave her a curious look.

"And what, pray tell, were we three doing?", he asked smoothly, "Something fun, I presume?" Filia's blush deepened as she looked at him shyly.

"Well, we were...", she began, "We were chasing Alara with an axe..." Xellos blinked in disbelief. Then he blinked again. Then he shook his head. Filia kept blushing, looking shyly up at him.

"Anyway," Xellos replied, "I have everything arranged for today. I want you to go ahead and play along until you hear from me." Filia blinked, sitting up in disbelief.

"Play along!?", she asked, unhappily, "Play along how far?! You're going to stop the wedding, aren't you!? I really don't want to go on a honeymoon with this guy!" Xellos smiled knowingly.

"Don't worry," he replied, "It'll never get that far. I'll fix everything." He patted Filia's cheek and looked happily at her for a moment before there was a knock on the door.

"Miss Filia?", a woman's voice came from the other side of the door, "We're here to dress you for the wedding!" Filia's eyes widened as she looked at Xellos.

"You have to get out of here!", she gasped, watching the smiling priest make no motion to leave, "Go on! Shoo! Just make sure everything goes alright!" Xellos gave her a wink and a Cheshire grin.

"Don't worry about anything, Filia," he said, trying to hide a snicker, "I'll make sure everything's taken care of." He chuckled, disappearing just before the door swung open and two dragon acolytes came in carrying Filia's frilly white dress in a large hanging bag.

"We're here to help you get into your dress, Miss Filia," one of the girls said, "Lacing up a girdle is a two person job, after all." Filia blinked, getting out of bed.

"Were you just talking to someone?", the other asked, looking around the room, "We thought we heard voices in here?" Filia blushed and put a hand behind her head.

"Oh, no!", she said, laughing nervously, "There's no one in here but us dragon maidens, right? Uhmm, by the way, where are my bridesmaids? Aren't they supposed to help me get dressed?" The two acolytes looked at each other, then back to Filia.

"They're getting ready themselves," one of the girls said, "And besides, it wouldn't be proper for humans to help a dragon get dressed." Filia sighed. This was moronic. She snatched the bag containing her wedding clothes from the hands of the acolyte. She threw it on the bed, then unzipped it, rummaging through the contents. She pulled up something satiny and lacy and bright white with straps hanging from it. Filia blushed brightly.

"Am I really supposed to wear this?", she asked, holding it up for the handmaids to see, "Underneath a wedding gown?" They nodded at her.

"It's your wedding lingerie," one of the girls replied, "Master Alara picked it out. He's looking forward to seeing you in it." Filia rolled her eyes.

"Why does that not surprise me in the least," she said, frustrated. She lifted her shirt over her head, causing the locket around her neck to sway back and forth as she did so. The two girls looked at it in fascination.

"Oh, that's so pretty, Miss Filia!", one exclaimed, "Will you be wearing it today?" Filia blinked, then looked down at the locket.

"Oh, this!", she said, smiling, "Yes, of course! My mother gave it to me to wear on my wedding day. It's got my picture in it, and my husband's picture is supposed to go on the other side of it." She opened it up to show the two attendants. Both girls gasped at how pretty it was. Then one pointed to it curiously.

"But, Miss Filia," she asked, "Why don't you already have Master Alara's picture in there?" Filia blinked, then smiled sheepishly.

"Well, uh," she stammered a little, "We're not married yet, you know." The girls looked at each other.

"So you don't like him, either?", the one on the right asked. Filia blinked, then remembered what the letter had said.

"Uhh, no," she replied softly, "No, I don't. Why?" The girls gathered around her.

"Well, we think he's creepy," the shorter one said, "He's sort of mean and pushy. None of the other girls will have anything to do with him." The taller one nodded.

"They've already tried to engage him to three other girls," the taller one said, "None of them stayed until the wedding. They all begged their parents to be let out of it." Filia clutched her locket. So the letters were right.

"Miss Filia," the shorter girl whispered excitedly, "Is it true what we've been hearing around here? Y'know... About you knowing Xellos Metallium?" The girl's bright blue eyes shone against her bright red hair. The taller girl sweatdropped and rubbed the back of her head. Filia groaned inwardly.

"You kids have no idea," Filia said, exasperated, "He's always hanging around and pestering me. And he's the reason my temple's elders forced me into this. They thought I liked him or something..." The girls, smiling, looked at Filia, then each other, then back to Filia.

"Well, maybe if he's always pestering you," the one with short black hair and blue eyes retorted, "It means he likes you! We see the boys do that around here all the time to girls they like." Both girls smiled and giggled at each other. Filia turned pale as she realized they were probably right. Suddenly a thought occurred to her.

"Okay, wait," Filia said, "Doesn't that scare you at all? That a cold-blooded killer like him would be interested enough in me to come around here? Aren't you afraid for your safety at all?" The two shook their heads and the smaller one grabbed her girdle off the bed, while the other one got her lingerie.

"No, we've read all about him in the history books," the black-haired one said, "It was always so interesting that we were curious, especially when we heard he might come here." It was then that Filia realized that she had two very strange handmaids on her hands.

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

The sun was high in the sky by now, making Lina squint as she looked up. "This is moronic," Lina commented, adjusting the terribly gaudy and frilly and itchy gold dress. "We weren't even able to help Filia get dressed!", she continued, griping in general to anyone who would listen, "Isn't that what a damned bridesmaid is supposed to do, anyway? Instead they kept us locked in our room for two straight days and wouldn't let us go anywhere!" Amelia straightened her dress as well.

The four of them were standing outside the small chapel that Filia and Alara would shortly be wed at. Alara was already inside, standing impatiently at the alter, looking as though he would lose his temper at any moment. "She's already half an hour late," he growled to himself, "She'd better have a remarkably well-thought-out excuse." He smoothed out his pristine white tuxedo, adjusting the gold cummerbund. His hair was loosely tied back with a gold ribbon, and it swished just slightly as he looked around the chapel. It had been decorated, as per his orders. It could be best described in one word: white. Bright, pure, snow white. There were white drapes, white carpets, white flowers, white streamers, the entire assembled congregation that was there to observe the wedding was dressed in white. As a matter of fact, the only two people who weren't were Filia's lowly human bridesmaids. Even their human ushers were in white tuxedos, although he'd heard the stone one had put up quite a fuss while being fitted. It didn't really matter, he reasoned to himself. He'd be rid of them for good in a few short hours, anyway.

Meanwhile, outside, the four humans continued talking. "You're not the only ones," Zelgadis commented, "We had to play 'Go Fish' for nearly two straight days." Gourry favored him with a sunny smile.

"I had fun!", Gourry commented, "I even beat you a few times!" Zel looked non-plussed.

"So, have either of you guys seen Filia?", Amelia asked, "Or have they kept her isolated from the rest of us?" There was a stir in the air just behind them.

"As a matter of fact," an obnoxiously familiar voice said, "I've seen her, just this morning. And it would appear that her... fiancé... has kept her shut up in her room." Lina jumped at hearing Xellos and turned around to glare at him. Xellos, unlike everyone else at the chapel, was not wearing white. Instead, he was wearing a dark purple suit, making quite a striking figure. In truth, he had planned on going against the grain, in hopes of irritating Alara.

Lina, meanwhile, reasoned to herself that she didn't even want to ask why Xellos would have been in Filia's room this morning. Judging from the looks he was getting from everyone else, they didn't either. Suddenly, a streak of white flashed into place beside Lina and Filia appeared. She was decked out from head to toe in shining, glaring, bright white satin and lace. The bodice of her dress was bedecked with pearls and small iridescent white beads and lace mesh. On the outside of her dress, she wore the small silver locket. She held a bouquet of white and golden roses, trailing halfway down her legs with vines of miniature roses. Her head was encircled with delicate white roses laced together with gossamer holding them together and forming a veil that was thrown back over the top of her head. The back of the veil trailed down her back and hung close to the train of the dress.

'Well,' Lina thought to herself, 'At least she's wearing white.' She tossed Xellos a suspicious look, but focused on Filia. "So are we ready?", Lina asked, "And you're really going through with this? This seems like a real mistake to me." Amelia nodded her assent.

"Miss Lina's right, Miss Filia," she responded, "This place is so stuffy! And that Alara guy is nothing but bad news!" Filia looked at the ground, trying to find the toes of her shoes underneath her skirts.

"I... I hope I'm not going to have to go through with this," Filia said, smiling uncertainly, "I mean, could you actually picture me staying here with that creep for the rest of my life?" Xellos smiled smugly, moving closer to Filia.

"I told you," he said quietly, smiling that infuriating smile again, "I have everything worked out. Trust me!" Filia gave him a sideways look.

"For some reason, whenever you say that, I'm less than inclined to actually trust you," she remarked, "Anyway, I think we should get this started." Amelia took Filia's wrist, stopping her from going anywhere.

"Wait, Miss Filia!", Amelia exclaimed, "Since it's your wedding, you need to have something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue! Even if you aren't going to go through with it, it's still good luck!" Filia blinked and looked down at her locket. She picked it up off her chest and showed it to Amelia.

"Well, this can be something old," she replied, "It belonged to my mother." Lina grinned.

"The dress can be something new," Lina offered, "Although that's not always a good thing..." She looked down, disgusted, at her own gaudy scrap of fabric.

"I'll lend you something!", Amelia chipped in, taking a gold bracelet off her wrist and fastening the clasp around Filia's, "There! Now you have something borrowed!" The three girls looked around their party. As luck would have it, not a single person had anything blue on them. Everything was white and gold, and blindingly so.

"I don't see anything blue," Filia said, "Doesn't anyone have anything blue on them? A handkerchief, or... a ribbon... or... something?" Everyone shook their heads. Except Xellos. He merely reached into the inside of his dress jacket and pulled out a dark blue, almost purple rose. Filia looked at him in shock as he tucked the flower behind her ear.

"There!", he said simply, "Now you have something blue." He placed the veil in front of her face, hiding the rose from view before a harsh tenor voice got his attention.

"What do you think you're doing!?", Alara exclaimed, suddenly appearing beside Filia, grabbing her by the arm and jerking her back, "Get your filthy hands away from my wife, you piece of gutter trash!" Xellos continued smiling, but it was an obviously strained expression. The corner of his eye started to twitch and Filia hoped for a second that he would just go ahead and get rid of the obnoxious white haired dragon once and for all. No such luck. Xellos kept his composure, although he still wore an especially acidic face.

"I would never dream of touching... 'your wife', sirrah," Xellos replied, mockingly cordial, yet demeaning, "I'll be off now." With that, he disappeared, leaving Filia to gape in anger.

'Damn you, Xellos!', she thought to herself, 'I thought you were going to help me!? You'd better come back here!' However, Filia didn't have too long to be angry before Alara turned on her, lips turned up in a snarl.

"So there's nothing going on, huh?", he asked sarcastically, "Are you certain of that? I would hate to be a cuckold and not have been married a day..." There was a certain venomous tone in his voice that made Filia nervous, but very angry at the same time. She glared back at him, wondering if he'd dare strike her in front of all these people. His hand snapped toward her face, causing her to flinch. He pulled back the veil covering her face and removed the dark blue rose from behind her ear. He threw it to the ground, then stepped on it, grinding it into the dirt with his white boot. He turned on his heel, walking back into the chapel. Suddenly, he stopped, turning back to the wedding party and snarling. "Well, don't just stand there looking like a gang of imbeciles," he snapped, "Let's get my wedding started!" Lina glared, balling up her little fists as the arrogant white-maned dragon walked back into the chapel.

"I am SO gonna Dragon Slave his ass," Lina said, pushing up her elbow-length gloves, "First chance I get, he's goin' down!" She stalked after him for a few paces before a firm hand caught her shoulder.

"Lina," Zelgadis said firmly, "Just let this play out. I think Xellos retreated just a bit too easily, don't you? He's planning something. If my hunch is right, you'll have plenty of chance to do as much Dragon Slaving as you want in a little while." Amelia nodded and Gourry straightened his tie, which was nearly choking him. Amelia looked over at Filia, who was shaking with anger, looking at the rose Alara had crushed.

"Miss Filia?", Amelia asked, "Are you alright?" She put a hand on Filia's shoulder, looking at her with genuinely worried eyes. Filia blinked and looked over at her, shaking her head.

"Let's just get this over with," Filia replied quietly. She turned quietly and motioned for the party to enter the chapel before her.

From the high branch in a nearby tree, the sounds of a bridal march playing could be heard. Xellos looked down, watching his five traveling companions disappear into the chapel. His smile twisted and turned horribly cruel as he watched them. He disappeared out of his tree, reappearing where the bride and her party had just been gathered. Eyes open and full of murder, he bent down and picked up the mangled blue rose. His hand closed around the carefully crafted flower, burying the sharp thorns in his palm. Black blood trickled down his fist and over his wrist in small streams. Xellos, however, seemed oblivious to the pain. Instead, he was intent on the wedding happening inside the chapel.

'That little... whelp... just insulted me!', he thought angrily, 'Maybe I take it from Filia, but I won't take it from that fool.' His face once again twisted in a demented grin as he looked toward the door of the chapel. 'I'd better go in,' he thought, amused, 'Wouldn't want to miss such a 'special' occasion, after all!'

* ~ * ~ * ~ *

"To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, 'till death do us part," Alara recited, his words echoing throughout the high-ceiling of the chapel. Filia felt her heart sitting in her stomach. How could he just leave her hung out to dry like this? She vaguely noticed the feeling of a ring slipping over her third finger on her left hand. The priest began reciting the same words, intending for her to repeat them. She felt Alara squeeze her hand hard and turned her head to look. His eyes were sharp and hard and angry. She swore inwardly, angry at him and angry at Xellos for having abandoned her here. But most of all she was angry at Saichuro for getting her into this. He was willing to go this far just to spite Xellos.

''Trust me!' indeed!', she thought bitterly to herself, 'The next time I see him...' Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by a tight squeeze on her hand, nearly making Filia think her wrist would break under the strain. The vows! The priest had stopped talking and was expecting her to repeat what he'd just said! Filia blinked, then looked at Alara and back at the priest. She hadn't been listening and had no real idea of what to say.

"I... I...", she stammered, hoping to remember some of what she'd just heard. Alara hissed at her, a warning that she'd better not back down now. Suddenly, out of the corner of Filia's eye, she saw something moving and contrasting the blaring whiteness of the chapel. She tried not to turn around, but to see what it was with her peripheral vision. Her heart leapt when she made out what she thought looked like Xellos, taking a seat in the back pew of the chapel. She smiled sunnily at the priest, who was beginning to look impatient. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry," she said sweetly, "What did you say again? I seem to have forgotten all of what you just said..." There was no mistaking it. That was definitely Xellos. She could feel his eyes on her back and his twisted smile curving across his face.

Suddenly, the priest stopped reciting the wedding vows. There was a croaking noise coming from somewhere in the chapel. Filia blinked and looked around, as did most of the guests. The noise got progressively louder and louder until suddenly, an old lady near the back jumped out of her seat and screamed. Several of the other guests followed suit until it became apparent what was causing them such distress. Filia turned her back on the alter and watched in mild amusement and shock as a swarm of frogs began bounding all through the chapel. They were in peoples' hair, up their dresses, down their backs, and under their feet. Filia fought the urge to break out laughing. Lina, who was standing beside her as a bridesmaid, looked on in disgust.

"If this is his idea of a joke," Lina remarked, "I frankly fail to see the humor." Amelia giggled.

"Mister Xellos is ruining Miss Filia's wedding," she said quietly, "I bet he simply couldn't stand to see her marry another man!" Lina rolled her eyes and Filia blushed.

"Miss Amelia!", she said in a hushed tone, "That's absurd! He's only doing this because the elders at my temple insulted him!" She knew that probably wasn't his only reason for doing this, but it would at least shut Alara up if he overheard. Regardless, Amelia continued giggling.

Gourry, meanwhile, was being swarmed by the overly-friendly frogs. He was practically dancing around trying to get them loose. However, it was soon apparent that the frogs would be the least of their worries. The outside doors of the chapel rang with a loud banging noise. Then the noise repeated itself. Then again. Suddenly, the doors flew open and a pack of large wolves bounded into the chapel. They chased the frogs merrily, howling and barking and playing, much to the chagrin of the guests and the slack-jawed Alara. A few errant wolves took to chasing the skirts of little old ladies who were foolish enough to run from them. Alara's hands balled into shaking fists, his eyes reading bloodlust.

Meanwhile, in the back pew, Xellos was leaning back with his feet up and his arms behind his head. This was quite entertaining. Now all he would need to make the day perfect would be for Alara to pick a fight with him. He was very much looking forward to dealing with that little upstart and showing him how to properly respect a 'dragon slayer'. He yawned, then reached over to the side of his pew and patted one of the wolves that happened to have stopped beside him. This was all well and good, but perhaps the boy needed a little more motivation to be a good sport. Xellos grinned as the shouts of the guests became louder.

The pristine white walls were now seemingly developing long, red streaks in them. The red streaks became red streams, and the red streams became puddles in the white carpet. For all intents and purposes, it appeared that the walls were bleeding. The guests looked at the horrible walls, gasping, and a few of the more squeamish ones made a bolt for the doors. Filia blinked and looked at the blood-stained walls, then at the furious Alara.

"This... This... Mazoku of yours," Alara said, teeth gritted, "Has just ruined my wedding! Right now... Right now, I'm going to deal with him... Later... I'll deal with you." He stalked away from the alter, heading intently down the aisle to where Xellos was gleefully watching the mayhem. He was subdued by a swarm of black bats flying by for a moment, but didn't let them deter him. He finally reached Xellos, lashing out and grabbing him by the collar and hauling him up to eye level. Xellos never dropped his smile. "You're going to pay for this, you scum," Alara said, teeth gritted, "This day was going to be perfect..." Xellos wagged a knowing finger at him.

"Oh, but it already has been!", he said gleefully. Suddenly, in a flash of black, Xellos disappeared. His voice, however, remained behind. "Why don't you come outside and fight me, then?", Xellos' voice queried, "The winner can keep Filia." Alara didn't answer; instead, he practically flew out the door.

Filia, having heard the challenge, was considerably less than enthused. "Xellos!", she yelled, shaking the whole chapel, "I'm not an object, you know!" Amelia sighed.

"How romantic!", she cooed, "Mister Xellos is going to go fight for Miss Filia's honor!" Lina and Zelgadis looked at each other boredly.

"How moronic," they both said in unison. Filia, red in the face from embarrassment and anger, started to run down the aisle, intent on keeping Xellos from killing Alara, even if he was a total ass. Before she could even get near the door, however, she was ambushed by the same swarm of bats that had subdued Alara minutes before. She swatted at them, but to no avail.

"Xellos!", she hollered, "Get these things off of me!" Xellos, however, seemed to have more pressing matters to deal with, as the bats did not abate. Instead, they picked Filia up with their claws and sinking their teeth into her clothing, and flew her up against one of the bloodstained walls. They pinned her upside down by her ankles, sending her skirts tumbling down around her face. Filia's cheeks lit up with blush as she tried to hold her skirts in at least a slightly respectable place. "Put me down!", she screamed angrily, "Let me go!" Her mother's locket hung loosely from her chin, dangling in her hair. It slipped momentarily and began to fall. Just before it hit the ground, however, one of the bats grasped it in its claws and flew away with it.

"Now, now, Filia dear," Xellos' voice rang throughout the temple, "You know I can't do that! You'd try to hinder me and then you might get hurt! And besides..." She suddenly felt as though he were right near her ear and a chill ran through her. "...I like your lingerie," came the whispered statement, followed shortly by a few teasing giggles. Filia looked non-plussed as she continued to hold her skirts up to her thighs, still blushing for all she was worth.

Outside, the bat that had stolen Filia's locket flew as fast as a shot to the roof of the chapel. Xellos, who was sitting lazily on top of the white roofed building, watched it with a broad smile. The leather-winged creature flapped its way over to its master, then dropped the silver locket into his waiting hand. Xellos, smiling, flipped the cover of the locket open with his thumb, then looked happily at Filia's portrait inside.

"Where have you run to, cur!?", Alara's angry voice came from the ground below, interrupting his thoughts, "Come out and fight me like a man!" Xellos smiled ferally and closed the locket, tucking it into his dress coat's inner pocket. He disappeared, reappearing at the edge of the roof of the chapel, looking down on his opponent.

"I would, boy," he replied mockingly, "But I'm afraid you wouldn't know how." Alara snapped around quickly to face him, firing off a blast of laser breath almost faster then the eye could see. Xellos did see, however, and teleported long before the blast reached him. Chuckling, he reappeared behind Alara, regarding him with an ultra-superior gaze. "You do realize," Xellos said, watching the furious dragon youth, "I've killed scores of your kind before. You really don't stand much of a chance against me." Alara growled for a moment before lunging at the Mazoku, hands going for the throat. Xellos' smiling facade disappeared before Alara could connect, and he reappeared behind the dragon. A staff flashed in front of Alara's off-balance feet, tripping him quite effectively.

Xellos chuckled as he made a fool out of the impertinent boy time and again. This was quite an amusing farce, especially since he'd treated Filia so badly before. 'It only serves him right,' Xellos thought smugly, 'This will teach him to respect my property.' Finally having had his fill of being made a fool, Alara picked himself up off the ground and clenched his teeth. A white light surrounded him for a second before he re-shaped into a large, white-maned golden dragon. Xellos looked up at the imposing figure, smiling cruelly. "That won't do you any good," he commented, smirking. Alara made a dive for him, initiating the real battle.

The guests of the wedding had poured out of the chapel, and were now standing around, gaping in awe. The longstanding, feared enemy of their race was battling one of their own within their temple grounds. Not for the fate of the world, or the honor of either race, rather for a woman's heart. It was a pitched battle, shaking the ground and most of the smaller buildings around. Inside the chapel, Filia was still hanging upside down, fuming.

'All the blood is rushing to my head!', she thought, frustrated, 'And they're fighting out there and I can't stop them! Xellos is so dead when I get down off this wall!' Finally, she'd had enough and her body started to glow a bright, white light. "XELLOS!", Filia bellowed, her dragon form shining into reality as she bolted away from the bats and straight through the roof of the chapel. Filia shot straight up into the sky, wheeling around to come back toward the temple and stop the fight.

Xellos, meanwhile, turned to look at the exploding chapel and the really angry Golden Dragon. Unfortunately, Alara took the opportunity to bowl Xellos over with a swipe of his tail. He flew backward into one of the walls of the chapel, rocking the building and leaving something of an indentation in the side of the building. "That was... stupid of me," Xellos said to himself, swearing inwardly for letting himself get distracted. He suddenly noticed a looming, white-haired dragon racing straight for him. However, before he could regain his composure and defend himself, another dragon dropped in front of him, spreading her wings out protectively and roaring.

"Stop!", Filia yelled, "Stop this fighting right now!" Alara wasn't listening, however. He growled angrily and shoved her aside, sending her rolling over the ground and into the side of the larger main temple. Alara didn't even see where she'd landed. Instead, he concentrated on Xellos, who he presumed was in a tight spot. Nothing could have been further from true. Xellos, being a terrible opportunist, grinned cruelly as the dragon loomed over him. He brought his staff up quickly to meet with the dragon's jaw, then gave him a quick jab to the stomach, then finished his assault with a blow directly between Alara's legs. He slid out from under the wounded creature, watching from behind as he tumbled to the ground, coughing and blue in the face. The dragon slowly shrank, reforming into Alara's human shape, looking just about as badly beaten as he had as a dragon. Xellos walked over proudly, placing a foot into his opponent's back, pressing his chest into the dirt, then grabbed him by the hair of the head and made him look up.

"Now, then," Xellos remarked, "I assume you realize you've lost? Good. I'm going to go check on Filia now. Please be a good boy and don't cause me any more trouble." With a sweet smile, Xellos dropped his adversary's head and stepped off his opponent's back. A blink of an eye later and he was beside Filia, who had been knocked unconscious by the force of being thrown against the temple wall. 'Apparently,' Xellos mused, 'She returned to her human form before she lost consciousness.' It was true. Filia was no longer in her Golden Dragon form. Instead, she was laying in the dirt in her tattered, bloodied wedding dress, breathing heavily. He bent down to get a better look at her and placed a hand on her forehead, brushing some hair out of her face. Filia's eyes fluttered open, looking at him sleepily, and she smiled.

"So he won't bother me anymore?", Filia asked quietly. Xellos grinned impishly at her.

"I told you I'd take care of it, didn't I?", he asked happily, "I said I would, and I did! You can trust me..." Filia gave him a look of general disbelief and tried to get enough balance to push herself up off the ground. Suddenly, a large shadow fell over the two of them, blocking out the sunlight. As they looked around, they noticed several more shadows obscuring their vision. Filia looked up, and then Xellos, to see several tall Golden Dragons looking down at them. Filia recognized two of them as the guards from a few days ago and assumed the rest of them must be security as well.

"Hey, you wouldn't be trying to start a fight without us," a familiar, saucy voice asked from behind one of the guards' legs, "Now, would you?" Lina stepped out from behind one of the dragons' massive legs, patting him good-naturedly and winking. "Myself," she continued, "I would've opted for helping you whip that sorry creep's ass and Dragon Slaving the whole place. But I was out-voted." Grumbling, she gave Zelgadis and Amelia an evil look as they, too, stepped out from behind some dragons' feet. Gourry stepped out from behind a dragon as well, picking frogs out of various places on his person.

"How is she?", one of the dragons asked, his voice booming in Filia's ears and making her head hurt. Xellos took hold of one of her elbows and stood her up beside him.

"I'll be fine, thank you," Filia replied quietly, rubbing the nasty bump she'd received on the head from the impact into the side of the temple. Lina grinned wickedly and flashed her a victory sign.

"So I take it the wedding's off?", Lina asked, a naughty undertone in her voice. Filia mirrored her expression and held up her left hand. She carefully slid the ring off her third finger and held it between her thumb and index finger.

"What do you think?", Filia asked, smirking. Xellos looked down at her, grinning smugly. She gave him a wink and walked toward Alara, pushing her way past the massive legs of the dragon guards. She reached Alara, where he was still laying on the ground, struggling to get up. Filia crouched down in front of him, placing the ring in front of his face on the ground. "No offense, Alara," she said, standing back up, "But I wouldn't marry you if you were the last dragon... the last man... on earth." With that, she walked back to her friends.

"So... If the wedding's off," Gourry reasoned, scratching his head, "Does that mean we still get to eat the wedding cake?" Lina's eyes lit up.

"Heeey!", she said, smacking her opened palm with her fist, "That's right! Let's go find the wedding banquet!" She grabbed Gourry's arm, dragging him off toward the main dining hall and leaving the others in the dust.

"Well, as long as they're going, we should, too," Amelia said, looking after them, "Right, Mister Zelgadis?" Zel shrugged and smiled down at the smaller girl.

"Why even bother to fight it?", he asked, good-natured rather than cynical for once, "Let's go, then." Amelia, smiling, took his arm and they followed Lina and Gourry through the dispersing crowd of dragon guards. That left Xellos alone, watching the dragons depart on wing. After the last one had flown away, Filia appeared amidst the dust stirred up by their departure. She walked through the swirling clouds of dust and approached Xellos.

"Where did everyone else go?", Filia asked, looking around at the now-empty area. Xellos shrugged, smiling.

"They went to scavenge some wedding food, I imagine," he replied simply, placing his hands in his pockets and trying his best to look sweet and innocent, "So what are you going to do now?" Filia blinked, then looked down at her dress. It was tattered, covered in dirt, and covered in blood from the bleeding walls of the chapel.

"I'm going to get out of this awful dress, that's what I'm going to do," Filia replied, taking her elbow-length, formerly white gloves off. Xellos grinned mischievously.

"May I help you?", he asked sweetly. Filia blushed and glared at him.

"No!", she squeaked, embarrassed, "I think you've spent enough time in my room while I'm half-clothed!" Xellos grinned, secretly satisfied with the embarrassment he was causing her. He shrugged.

"Well," he went on, "You know, Saichuro's not going to be happy when he hears about this..." Filia grinned back at him, mischief playing in her eyes as well now.

"I tell you what," Filia reasoned, "When I get out of this dress, I'll send it to him, and he can hang it off his damned lingam for all I care." Xellos grinned, opening an eye at her.

"A girl after my own heart," he chuckled, "That's my dragon!" He slipped an arm around her waist and began leading her after the rest of the gang. Filia looked up at him, shock on her face.

"_Your_ dragon?", she asked indignantly. Xellos continued smiling and reached into the pocket of his dress coat, pulling something shiny and silver on a long chain out. He let the heart-shaped locket dangle in front of Filia's face, her eyes wide with happiness.

"Drop something?", he asked, dropping the locket into her waiting hands. Filia put the locket around her neck and nearly fastened it before a thought occurred to her. She took the necklace off and opened the heart-shaped locket. Her face brightened as she fought the urge to giggle. She looked up at Xellos, smiling, and snapped the locket shut again before putting it back around her neck and fastening it.

"Saichuro wouldn't be happy about that," Filia mock-scolded. Xellos gave her an impish grin in return.

"I know," was all he said.


End file.
